It is well known that color photographic light-sensitive materials, using the subtractive process for color reproduction, comprise silver halide emulsion layers selectively sensitive to blue, green and red light and associated with yellow, magenta and cyan dye forming couplers which form (upon reaction with an oxidized primary amine type color developing agent) the complementary color thereof. For example, an acylacetanilide type coupler is used to form a yellow color image; a pyrazolone, pyrazolotriazole, cyanacetophenone or indazolone type coupler is used to form a magenta color image; and a phenol type, such as a phenol or naphthol, coupler is used to form a cyan color image.
Usually, the color photographic light-sensitive materials comprise non-diffusible couplers incorporated independently in each of the light-sensitive layers of the material (incorporated coupler materials). Therefore, a color photographic light-sensitive material usually comprises a blue-sensitive silver halide emulsion layer (or layers) which contains a yellow coupler and which is mainly sensitive to blue light (substantially to wavelenghts less than about 500 nm), a green-sensitive silver halide emulsion layer (or layers) which contains a magenta coupler and which is mainly sensitive to green light (substantially to wavelengths of about 500 to 600 nm) and a red-sensitive silver halide emulsion layer (or layers) which contains a cyan coupler and which is mainly sensitive to red light (substantially to wavelengths longer than about 590 nm).
It is also known to incorporate into a light-sensitive color photographic material a compound capable of releasing a development inhibitor during development upon reaction with the oxidation product of a color developing agent. Typical examples of said compounds are the DIR (Development Inhibitor Releasing) couplers having a group having a development inhibiting property when released from the coupler introduced at the coupling position of the coupler. Examples of DIR couplers are described by C. R. Barr, J. R. Thirtle and P. W. Wittum, Photographic Science and Eng., vol. 13. pp 74-80 (1969) and ibid. pp 214-217 (1969) or in U.S. Pat. Nos. 3,227,554, 3,615,506, 3,617,291, 3,701,783, 3,933,500 and 4,149,886.
The purpose of DIR couplers is to reduce grainines and improve sharpness of the image due to intralayer or intraimage effects (that is in the same layers or the same dye image) and improve color reproduction due to interlayer or interimage effects (that is in different layers or different dye images). Usually, however, the DIR coupler causes, in the light-sensitive silver halide multilayer color element in which is used, interimage effects mainly in the high-density areas of the negative image, while it is often desirable to obtain interimage effects in the low-density areas which much more affects image characteristics such as color saturation and brilliance.
Therefore, in order to more effectively use the DIR couplers, it is desirable to develop novel DIR couplers which improve interimage effects of lightsensitive silver halide multilayer color elements.
Several substituents on the phenyl ring of the 2-benzotriazolyl development inhibiting group of DIR couplers have been described, for example in U.S. Pat. Nos. 3,617,291, 4,145,219 and 4,477,563, in GB Pat. Appln. 2,010,818, in EP Pat. Appln. 115,302 and 101,621. However, there is nothing in the cited references which would suggest that appropriate selection and combination of substituents on the phenyl ring of a 2-benzotriazolyl development inhibitor group would give the aforementioned desired improvements in interimage effects.